


Broken

by DarkAliceLilith



Category: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Genre: Attempted Rape, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-10
Updated: 2012-06-10
Packaged: 2017-11-07 10:08:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/429829
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkAliceLilith/pseuds/DarkAliceLilith
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Wesley has dropped out of the academy and returned to the Enterprise. Nobody knows why, but they do know that he had been severely traumatized. With the help of Troi, Riker takes it upon himself to get Wesley to open up about what happened to him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Broken

**Author's Note:**

> This was written for a Wesley/Riker mini-bang at wesleyriker on Livejournal. I did add Will/Riker as the pairing, but it's more of a pre-slash/friendship if anything. This fic mostly focuses on their friendship if anything, so feel free to ignore any hinted Will/Wes if you'd like.

Wesley materialized onto the Enterprise, and saw his mother standing there. He stepped down and allowed himself to enveloped in a hug. She kissed his cheek before taking a step back. “Welcome back, Wes.”

“Thanks, Mom,” Wesley replied, his voice void of all emotions.

Beverly forced herself not to frown, even as she looked into his blank eyes. “Well, shall we get you settled in your quarters then?”

“That would be nice.”

Beverly walked with Wesley to his quarters. She tried to question him, but he simply turned to her and told her he had no desire to talk. She tried again once they made it to his quarters but he remained silent. She finally gave up and reported to Sick Bay for an extra shift.

Nobody knew what happened to Wesley at the academy. All that Beverly knew was that Wesley was found in an engineering classroom, beaten and his clothes torn. He kept silent about who did it and why. Beverly had hoped that by bringing him back to the Enterprise, he would open up to somebody about what happened to him.

Around dinner time, Beverly visited Wesley’s quarters. When she entered, she found him sitting on the bed, staring at the floor. She came over and sat down next to him. “Wesley, hey Wesley.”

“What, Mom?”

“I thought we could have dinner together. We have a lot to catch up on.”

“No, we don’t,” Wesley replied. “There’s nothing to catch up on. You just want to get it out of me, but I won’t tell you. I won’t tell anybody.”

“Then we can talk about what’s been going on around the ship since you’ve been gone. Is that ok?”

“That’s fine.”

She stood up. “Come on, then.”

He looked up at her. “What?”

“I thought we could go to Ten Forward.”

Wesley slowly stood up and followed her to Ten Forward. She couldn’t help but notice how nervous he got as they walked down the halls of the ship. He looked as though he wanted to fade away. He quickly walked to an empty table in the corner of the room.

Guinan came over and greeted him. “Hello, Wesley, it’s nice to see you back on the ship.”

“Thank you, Guinan,” Wesley replied.

“What can I get you two?”

Wesley shrugged, looking out the window. Beverly ordered for them and tried to talk to him. “Picard told me you can go back to working on the bridge if you’d like to. Maybe even engineering, I’m sure that Geordi would love to see you down there.”

Wesley continued to look out the window, completely silent. She reached over and touched his arm. Wesley jumped and wrapped his arms tightly around himself. She pulled her hand back, mentally cursing. “Wes…”

“Mom, I really don’t feel like chatting, so please stop trying.”

“I’m sorry, Wes.”

When their food came, they ate in complete silence. More accurately, Beverly ate her food, Wesley simply pushed it around on his plate. “You really don’t want to be here do you?”

Wesley set his fork down and looked up at his mother. “Do you want the truth or a lie?”

Beverly shook her head. “Never mind.”

They fell into an awkward silence, Wesley not wanting to talk and Beverly not knowing want to say. She had hoped that Wesley coming back to the Enterprise, a place that he loved, would help him. But it had also been less than a day and given more time, maybe Wesley would get better.

Wesley stood up after eating less than half of his food. “I’m tired and would like to rest. Good night, Mother.”

Beverly set her fork down. “Wesley, I thought-”

“I told you before that I didn’t want to talk,” Wesley said. “And I really am tired.”

Wesley returned to his quarters and grabbed his bag. He hadn’t unpacked yet, so he grabbed out the little he brought back with him and put it all away. At the bottom of the bag, he found an old book that had been given to him as a parting gift when he first left the Enterprise.

He picked it up and opened it to the first page, where there was a small note. ‘Remember that I’ll always be there for you - Will.’ It was a tale of separate friends who came back together in the end. Something he used to read all the time.

He shut the book and placed it on the top of his dresser. His hand lingered on the book for a few minutes before returning to unpacking.

He was folding up the bag and placing it in the bottom drawer of his dresser, when he heard the door. He closed the drawer and stood up, straightening his shirt before answering. He saw Will on the other side and Wesley looked away. “Yes?”

“I just want to come check in on you,” Will replied. “Wanted to make sure you-everything was ok.”

“I’m fine, Commander,” Wesley replied. “Everything’s fine.”

“May I come in?”

“I’m tired and would like some rest before my meeting with the captain later,” Wesley said, not missing the hurt look that crossed Will’s face. “So if you don’t mind, I’m going to get some rest.”

“Well, maybe we could talk later?”

“Maybe,” Wesley said before taking a step away from the sensor and letting the door shut. He stood there for a few seconds before making his way to his bed and sitting down on the edge of it.

Will stood outside Wesley’s door, a little hurt to have it shut in his face. He and Wesley had been so close before the teen had left for the Academy. He turned and went to Deanna’s office. Even if Wesley didn’t want it, Will was going to get his friend back.

_______________

 

Will took a seat on the couch in Deanna’s office. “He shut the door in my face.”

Deanna looked up from the PADD she was reading. “Who did that?”

“Wesley,” Riker replied. “I went to go see him and-and he shut the door in my face. It was like he didn’t want to see me.”

“Will, he just came back to the ship today,” Deanna replied. “Give him time.”

“But you’ve seen the reports and-”

“And he needs time,” Deanna repeated. She set the PADD aside and leaned forward a bit. “Listen, I’m going to tell you exactly what I told Beverly. Wesley needs time and when he wants to talk then he’ll talk. Don’t rush it.”

“Then what can I do?”

“Rebuild your friendship with him,” Deanna replied. “And be there for him when he’s ready to talk.”

Will was silent for a moment. “This will work?”

Deanna nodded. “It will.”

___________

 

The next day, while on his way to the bridge, Will found Wesley walking alone. He stopped in his tracks for a moment, watching the teen. Seeing Wesley so depressed made his heart break. He only had a few more minutes to report to the bridge, but he was sure the captain wouldn’t mind too much. He walked towards Wesley.

“Hey, Wes.”

Wesley turned around to look at him. “Commander.”

A frown flashed across Will’s face at the formal address. “I was wondering if you would like to join me in Ten Forward after my shift, if you aren’t busy.”

Wesley shook his head. “I-I have-”

“Please?” Will asked, softly. “Please.”

After a moment, Wesley nodded. “Alright. I’ll meet you there.”

When his shift ended, Will left the bridge and made his way to Ten Forward. He looked around and spotted Wesley in the corner alone. He ordered a couple of drinks from Guinan before making his way over to Wesley and sitting across from him. He placed one of the drinks in front of Wesley. “You look a bit tired, so I got you some coffee.”

Wesley took it, but didn’t drink from it. “Thank you.”

“So, I heard the captain let you go back to working in Engineering,” Will said, trying to make conversation. “How was your first day back?”

“Fine.”

“What did you do?”

“Helped La Forge with a diagnostic,” Wesley replied. “I think he wanted to make sure that I remembered how everything worked.”

“Well, you’ve been gone for over a year,” Will said. “Refamilarizing yourself with the Enterprise wouldn’t be such a bad idea.”

Wesley nodded. “Yeah.”

Will fell silent, trying to think of something to say that didn’t involve the academy, so asking Wesley about the past year of his life was out of the question. At least, not until Will felt Wesley was ready to talk about it. They ended up in an uncomfortable silence, Wesley not wanting to talk and Will not knowing what to say.

Finally, Wesley pushed his untouched cup of coffee away from him and stood up. “I have something I need to get done. This was...nice.”

Will nodded. “Yeah. It was.” Wesley started to walk away when Will called out to him. “Do you think maybe we could do this again tomorrow? I really missed our talks.”

Wesley was silent for a moment. “What’s the point? There’s not much to talk about anymore, especially since everyone’s trying to avoid the elephant in the room.”

“Wes-”

“It’s fine, Will,” Wesley said. “I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not,” Will said, but Wesley didn’t hear him as he walked away. Will looked down at his own cup of coffee and pushed it away.

A few moments later, a shadow fell over the table and he looked up to see Guinan. “May I sit with you?”

Will nodded. “Yeah, of course.”

“I admire what you’re trying to do, Will,” Guinan said. “I won’t tell Beverly this, but I think you are the only person on the ship that he will open up to. In his own time, of course.”

“Why do you think it’s me?”

“Because that boy admires you, Will. He always has.”

“I don’t know why. I’m not exactly role model material.”

“No, but you’re the first person who treated him like an adult instead of a child. Something he really appreciated,” Guinan said. “How would you treat an adult who didn’t want to talk about something?”

______________

 

Weeks passed. When Wesley wasn’t working in Engineering, he would be found in his quarters. Every day, Will tried to get him to socialize, but each attempt was quickly turned down. Sometimes, Wesley wouldn’t even open the door.

Will made his way to Deanna’s office and waited for her to be done counseling one of the other crew members before going inside and sitting on the couch. Deanna made a note of something on her PADD, before looking up at him. “Any progress?”

Will shook his head. “He won’t leave his quarters. I’m starting to give up.” Will sighed softly. “Maybe you should try.”

“And what would I do? Remember what Guinan said to you?” Deanna said. “She told you that you in his own time, Wesley will open up to you.”

“And you believe that?”

Deanna nodded. “I do. He does look up to you and I know that you care a lot about him.”

Will closed his eyes. “I need help, Deanna. I don’t think that I can do this by myself.” He opened his eyes and looked at her. “Please.”

“I can only offer my help,” Deanna replied. “It’s up to him if he wants to see me or not.”

“Will you let me know if he talks to you?”

“You know that I can’t do that, Will.”

Will nodded and stood up. “I have an idea. Wish me luck.”

“Good luck.”

The next day, Will wouldn’t leave until Wesley opened the door up. The teen leaned against the doorframe and looked up at him. “Have you ever thought that maybe I don’t want to spend time with anyone?”

“I’ve thought about it,” Will said. “And you may not want it, but I think you need someone who is there for you.”

“No, I don’t.”

“Yes, you do, Wes. I won’t make you talk about what happened at the academy, but I want to work on being friends again. Spending time alone isn’t going to make it go away.”

“And spending time with other will?”

Will shook his head. “No. Spending time with others will help you not go insane. You are not a hermit, Wes. You’re far from it. Before you left, you were a social butterfly.”

“Well, things change.”

“And they can change again.”

Wesley sighed in annoyance. “What is it today? Another drink in Ten Forward?”

Will shook his head. “I got a program set up in the holodeck so we’re in a movie theater. We can watch any movie you like.”

Wesley tensed up. “You know, I think I’d like to have a drink in Ten Forward instead.”

“Whatever you want, Wes.”

“Shall we go then?”

Wesley nodded and they headed down to Ten Forward. They took a seat in the corner, which seemed to be Wesley’s new favorite spot. “So, you’re adjusting well to being back here, right?”

Wesley nodded. “A bit, yeah.”

“You haven’t gone on any missions yet?”

“You know the answer to that one.”

“I’m trying to have a conversation with you, Wes.”

“I know.”

Will bowed his head and was quiet for several seconds. “You know what? You’re making this very hard on me. We used to talk all the time before the Academy and even when you first went.” Will sighed. “Then all at once, it stopped. And that really, really hurt. You’re my friend, one of my best friends. Well, you were. I don’t even know what we are anymore. If you don’t want to talk to me, then fine. At least I tried.”

When he looked up again, Wesley was looking out the window, a distant look on his face. Will shook his head. “Were you even listening to me?”

“I was listening to you, Will,” Wesley replied. He looked back at the older man. “If you knew what happened to me, then you would understand why it’s so hard to talk to you. You should be lucky that I’m here at all.”

“Then tell me what happened,” Will said and without thinking, he reached out and placed his hand over Wesley’s.

Wesley pulled back immediately and stood up, his eyes wide. “Don’t. Touch. Me.”

Will mentally slapped himself and felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment due to everyone looking their way. “Wes, I didn’t mean it.”

Wesley gave him a cold look before walking away from him. Will slumped in his chair and he bowed his head once more. He had thought he was making progress, but no. He had to open his mouth and lose it all. Not able to handle the stares, he got up and left Ten Forward.

Wesley returned to his own quarters. Once the door closed, he leaned back against it and closed his eyes. He hadn’t meant to react the way he did, but it reminded him too much of what happened to him at the academy.

He slid down the door and wrapped his arms around himself. The touch was supposed to be comforting - he knew that’s what Will was trying for. He was trying to connect with him. He tried to think about that. Will cared about him and would never try to hurt him, but Wesley’s mind wouldn’t allow him to believe it.

‘You thought he wouldn’t hurt you either,’ Wesley’s mind told him. ‘What makes you think Will won’t do the same?’

“Because Will cares about me,” Wesley whispered to himself. “He’s always cared about me.”

‘You thought he did as well, and look at what he did to you.’

“I can ever trust anyone again, can I?” Wesley said.

The voice in his head didn’t respond.

___________

 

Will entered Deanna’s office after his shift had ended the following day. He collapsed on the couch, not knowing what to say besides, “I think I screwed up.”

“Judging by what I’ve heard around the ship, I think so. Tell me what you did.”

“I said something I shouldn’t have.”

“Like?”

“Like he’s making this difficult and I don’t even know if we’re friends anymore.”

“Will, why would you say that?”

“Because I can’t keep my damn mouth shut.”

“Then what happened?”

“I touched his hand and he freaked out on me.”

Deanna was silent for a moment. “Will, there’s some things that Beverly told me and I shouldn’t be telling you, but I think that you need to hear them.”

“And what’s that?”

“Whoever assaulted him, we believe there was a sexual motive behind it.”

“He was raped?”

Deanna shook her head. “We don’t know for certain. The bruises and his clothes suggested it, but he refused to talk to the doctor on campus.”

Will bowed his head. “So when I touched him-”

“It may have brought back memories of what happened.”

“God, I feel like such an idiot now.”

“You didn’t know.”

“I shouldn’t have tried in the first place,” Will said. “He’s been jittery for months, and then when I finally try to reach out to him I messed it all up.”

“Will-”

“I’m done. I can’t do it.”

“Yes, you can. You’re the only one.”

Will shook his head. “No. I can’t.”

“Will, you know now some of the difficulties he’s had. You’ve seen how little he’s interacting with people. He might not be talking with you much, but you are his friend and I am sure he sees that you are still trying to get through to him. Do you really think it would make things better to allow him to completely isolate himself?”

“But I already told you that I messed up.”

“Then go fix it.”

Will waited until the Enterprise visited the planet Risa before making any moves. He had made a vacation request and learned that Wesley had also filed a request. Both were granted. Will beamed down to the planet and got situated before going over to the computer to find out where Wesley was staying.

He waited a few nights before going to Wesley’s suite. Gently, he knocked on the door and waited a few minutes for Wesley to open The door cracked open and Wesley looked out at him. “What do you want?”

“I wanted to ask you if you would care to join me for a walk,” Will replied. “Down by one of the beaches.”

“No.”

“Please?”

“Why?”

“Because otherwise you’ll be staying in here for the rest of your trip.”

“You don’t know that.”

“But I do.”

Wesley sighed. “Just give me a moment.” The door shut again. It was about five minutes before Wesley opened the door again and stepped out. “So, the beaches?”

Will nodded. “Unless you wanted to go somewhere else.”

“No, no. The beaches are fine.”

“Shall we go then?”

Wesley nodded. “Lead the way, Commander.”

Will led the way, until they found one of the many crowded beaches. Wesley stopped as he saw the number of people there. “If this is too much, we can go somewhere else.”

Wesley shook his head. “This is fine, Will. Stop worrying about me.”

“I wouldn’t if you stopped giving me things to worry over,” Will muttered. Wesley gave him a look. “Sorry, Wes.”

Wesley started to walk towards the shoreline and Will followed. They stood by the edge, and let the water run over their bare feet. Will looked over at his friend, Wesley didn’t look as tense as he did before. He looked back out at the water. “I’ve been through a lot of traumatizing events as well, Wes.”

“Will-”

“Please, let me finish.” Wesley nodded and Will continued. “I don’t think what I went through was as bad as what happened to you, but the events were still pretty traumatizing.” He looked at Wesley once more. “When we lost Tasha, it hurt. I’ve seen crew members killed, but none of them were my friends. So their deaths didn’t hurt as much as hers. So I, along with quite a few other crew members, went to talk to Deanna. It helped.”

“Are you telling me to go talk to her?”

Will shook his head. “No, I’m telling you that it helps to talk to someone and I want you to know that I’m here for you. Whenever you want to talk.”

Wesley looked out at the water and was silent for the moment. “I did talk to Counselor Troi. I didn’t tell her about what happened, but I talked about the early days at the academy. The things that I told you when we talked.”

“And?”

“It was nice to have someone to talk to. Even if I wasn’t telling them what happened.”

“What made you decide to take her offer?”

“I was struggling with a lot of things, Will. I still am,” Wesley said. “I apologize for how I acted the last time we talked, it’s just it brought up memories.”

“I figured that that’s what happened. I’m sorry for my behavior.”

“It’s fine, Will. You didn’t mean any of it. I talked to Deanna because it’s what needed to be done. I wasn’t ready to talk to you, but I did need to talk to someone. So, I thought it would be better to talk to a counselor before I talked to you. I mean, she is trained to deal with these kinds of things.”

Will nodded. “Yeah, I suppose you’re right.”

They continued to walk until they found a more secluded spot. Wesley sat down on a rock and looked out at the water once more. “I’ve never been to Risa before. Can’t believe I almost spent my time indoors.”

“I knew you would regret it.”

“Thank you, Will.”

Will sat down in the sand next to Wesley. “It’s no problem.”

They sat in silence for quite some time, just watching the waves crash against the shore. Occasionally, others would pass by, some would say hello, others were too busy to speak.

“Will?” Wesley said after a while.

“Yeah?”

“Can we come out here tomorrow?”

“Only if you accompany me to dinner tonight,” Will replied, as he looked over at Wesley.

Wesley looked over at him and for the first time since Wesley returned to the Enterprise, Will saw him smile. “Dinner sounds nice.”

“Then we should get going,” Will said. “It’ll be dark soon.”

Wesley stood up and held his hand out towards Will, who took it. Will got up as well and they headed back towards the hotels. They found a restaurant who specialized in Terran food. They found a table near the back and looked through the menus.

The waiter came and they each ordered. Will got a steak and potatoes, while Wesley got a turkey sandwich. They ate in a comfortable silence, with Wesley occasionally looking up at Will. He felt oddly comfortable around Will, more comfortable than he’d felt in a long time.

When they finished, they talked for a bit before Will paid for their dinner and they headed back to the hotel. Will walked Wesley up to his room and bid him a good night. “So, when do you want to head out to the beach tomorrow?”

“I’ll come to you, Will,” Wesley replied.

“Sounds like you’re trying to ditch me.”

“I’m the one who asked to go to the beach again,” Wesley said. “I’ll show up, Will. I promise.”

“Alright. Good night, Wes.”

“Goodnight, Will.”

Wesley closed the door and leaned against it. Today was nice and reminded him of how close he and Will had once been - something Wesley found himself wanting again.

It was close to noon the following day when Wesley left his hotel room and headed over to Will’s. He had just reached Will’s floor when he saw Deanna walking out of Will’s room. She bid him a goodbye and kissed Will’s cheek before walking down the hall towards Wesley.

She stopped in front of him and smiled. “Enjoying your vacation, Wesley?”

Wesley nodded. “In fact I am.”

Her smiled widened. “I’m glad to hear that. I heard you and Will will be spending the day together.”

Wesley nodded again. “Yeah, we’re going to the beach.”

“Sounds like fun. Well, I guess I should get going. Have fun today Wesley and make sure to come see me again when we get back to the Enterprise.”

“I’ll make sure to do that,” Wesley replied. “You have fun today as well.”

Deanna left and Wesley made his way to Will’s room. He knocked on the door and waited a few seconds for Will to answer. When he did, he had a big smile on his face. “Good afternoon, Wes. What’s on the agenda for the day?”

“I thought we already decided on going back to the beach?”

“Well I didn’t know if you changed your mind. That’s what I asked.”

“I suppose we could get some lunch first.”

“It can be my treat,” Will said as he stepped out of his hotel room and closed the door. “Just pick a restaurant.”

“How about the one we went to last night? What was it called?”

Will shrugged. “I don’t remember what it’s called, but I remember where it was.”

They grabbed some lunch to go and headed out to the beach to the secluded spot they found the night before. They sat down in the sand and started to eat their lunch. They ate in a comfortable silence, and when they were finished Will got up to discard their trash before sitting down next to Wesley once more. Wesley was looking out at the water and seemed very lost in thought.

“What’s on your mind?” Will asked.

Wesley shook his head and looked down at the sand. “Just thinking about different stuff.”

“Like what?”

“I haven’t felt this relaxed in a long time,” Wesley replied. “Being here with you, it helped me forget for a moment.”

It probably wasn’t the best time to ask, but Will wanted to know. “What happened to you, Wesley?” Will watched as Wesley grew tense. He mentally cursed himself in his head. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have-”

“It’s ok, Will,” Wesley said as he looked over as Will. “I-I think I’m ready to tell you.” Wesley looked around before speaking to make sure there was no one else to over hear. “The signs were there for months before it happened. I just-I was an idiot and I ignored them. I thought he was a good guy. I mean, he was my teacher so I just assumed he was a good guy.”

“A teacher? You were raped by your teacher?”

“I wasn’t raped, Will,” Wesley said, his fingers digging into the sand. “He tried to rape me, but I fought back. It was when I started screaming that he stopped. I guess he was terrified someone would hear me, so he knocked me out and left me for someone else to find. I surprised he didn’t kill me to keep my mouth shut. Or maybe he knew I’d be too traumatized to say anything.” Will watched as a tear fell down Wesley’s face. “I had never been so scared in my life, Will. I want to know why it happened, why was it me? What the hell did I do to deserve what he did to me? Why?”

“You didn’t deserve it, Wes,” Will said. “Nobody ever deserves being treated that way, especially you.”

“I feel tainted,” Wesley said. “And I still feel raped, even though I wasn’t. He took who I was away from me and now there’s nothing left. I’m not Wesley any more, I’m someone completely different. At least, that’s how I feel.”

“There’s still something there, a small spark of who you were before.”

“What makes you say that?”

“You smiled yesterday, Wes,” Will replied. “I never thought I would see you smile again, but you did. You were happy and that proves that who you are is still in there and it’s fighting. You want to get better, and you want help. Don’t let yourself slip away.”

Will found himself surprised when Wesley leaned against him and suddenly broke down. “I want him locked up, Will. I don’t want this to happen to anyone else, but I’m scared he’ll find me. I’m scared of what he’ll do to make me stay quiet.”

Hesitantly, Will wrapped his arm around Wesley. Wesley accepted the touch and Will pulled him into a hug. “It’s a bridge we can cross later. I think you need to get better first. Talk to Deanna and when you feel that you can speak up, we can go to the council together. He won’t hurt you again, Wes. I promise you that he won’t.”

“You won’t always be around, Will,” Wesley said. “You can’t make a promise like that.”

“But I am making that promise. When I find out who he is, I‘m going to make sure that he is never going to do that again, to anyone. I’ll even break his neck if you want me to.”

Wesley looked up at him. “You’d do that for me?”

Will nodded and wiped away Wesley’s tears. “I would do a lot for you, Wes. You’re my friend. I care a lot about my friends and I take care of them when they need it. You need someone to look out for you now and I’m willing to do that if you let me. Even if the only help you want is someone to vent to.”

“I really appreciate that, Will,” Wesley replied. “Thank you.” He rested his head back on Will’s shoulder and sighed softly. Will started to pull away, but Wesley grabbed his arm, stalling him. “Can you hold me just a little longer?”

Will nodded and kept his arms around Wesley. “I didn’t think you wanted to be touched.”

“I feel safe with you, Will,” Wesley replied. “I know that you’re not going to hurt me.”

“A few days ago, you were singing a different tune. What changed your mind?”

“Because you just told me you’ll take care of me and I believe you.”

When they returned to the Enterprise a few days later, the change in Wesley was noticeable by everyone. He was no longer the empty shell that appeared on the Enterprise a mere few weeks ago. Will had been right and a spark of Wesley’s former self was beginning to ignite.

A week after their vacation, Wesley invited Will to his quarters for dinner - a move that surprised him. Until now, they only hung out in public places.

Will accepted the invite and made his way to Wesley’s after his shift had ended. It was the first time he had actually been inside Wesley’s quarters since the teen had returned to the Enterprise, and he found it to be quite empty. Then again, Wesley had been seen carrying only one back of luggage when he returned.

Wesley was sitting at the small table, writing something in a notebook. When Will sat down across from him, Wesley quickly shut the notebook and placed his arms over it. Will couldn’t help but to comment, “What’s that?”

“Deanna suggested that I use a notebook to write down my feelings,” Wesley replied. “Says it’ll help.”

“Most people don’t use notebooks anymore.”

“Most people nowadays wouldn’t suspect someone using a notebook,” Wesley said. “So my personal thoughts stay safe and not in something that can get hacked.”

“That’s a very good idea.”

“I used to keep journals before,” Wesley replied. “Of course, then they were on PADDs. At the academy, I found a place that sold notebooks and other stuff. So I bought quite a few and used them. I found that even though it was primitive, I had a backup for my notes when my PADD stopped working for some reason.”

“That was a very smart idea.”

“I’m a pretty smart kid, some of the time,“ Wesley said as he stood up. “What would you like for dinner?”

“How about some lasagna? I haven’t had that in a while.”

Wesley nodded and told the replicator Will’s order before getting a ham and cheese sandwich for himself. He came back and set their plates down before getting them each something to drink. He sat back down and they started to eat and speak of their day.

When they finished, Will got up and got rid of their plates before sitting back down. He could tell that Wesley was lost in thought and staring at his notebook, which he had placed on the floor. “Wes?”

Wesley shook his head and looked at Will. “Yeah?”

“Care to tell me what’s on your mind?”

“I don’t know.”

“Academy stuff?” Will had managed to get more out of Wesley about his academy days, but there was still a lot that he didn’t know.

Wesley folded his hand and placed them on the table. “Have I ever told you that I’m attracted to older men?”

Will’s eyebrows shot up. That was definitely not something he expected Wesley to say to him, especially at a time like this. “N-no.”

“The teacher, who attacked me, I was attracted to him,” Wesley said. “He was one of the first people to take an interest in me while I was there and-and I didn’t exactly try to hide how I felt for him. Which after what happened to me was a horrible idea. I asked you why he would do such a thing and I guess that I led him on.”

“Wes, you didn’t know that would happen.”

“The signs were there all along, Will,” Wesley said. “He was always close, always touching me in some way. The way he spoke to me.” Wesley bowed his head and sighed. “It was there and if I wasn’t so damn blinded by my infatuation, then I would still be at the academy and I would be on my way to a better career in Starfleet. Now, I’m probably going to remain an ensign the rest of my life.”

“Wes, don’t let this stop you from achieving your dreams.”

“When I finally do step forward, you’ll be there right? You’ll be by my side?”

Will nodded. “I will always be by your side, Wes. Always.”

“Then come with me to Earth,” Wesley said. “I think it’s time.”

“Are you sure? I thought you were waiting.”

“If I wait, then I’ll never do it,” Wesley replied. “And if I wait, then other students could go through what happened to me or even worse. I want to speak up and I want you there.”

Will nodded. “We’ll go to Earth. I’ll mention something to the captain and we’ll go.”

“Thank you, Will.”


End file.
